Till vs. No Till Gardening - Pros & Cons of Each

The topic of till versus no till gardening has always been a widely discussed topic and one that is often heated. I tend to take the approach that there is not a one size fits all solution to gardening and so in this episode I will lay down the pros and cons to each and you can decide which one works best for you.
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[VeganChiefWarrior]

if you turn this channel into a trial garden you will officially have the best gardening channel on youtube i effing LOVE seeing comparisons between like, planted in the soil below vs planting in the compost above vs planting right on top of the soil in the compost and things like removing mulch to see if it makes a quicker spring start and compost mixd with drainage vs just compost and mulch vs compost and all that kinda stuff

[BrianNguyenBeehive]

I don't garden at all (I have zero space to garden) but I just discovered your channel and have been going through HOURS and HOURS of your content. <3 I love your channel.

[MookieCards]

My plot 4 years ago you could make pottery there was so much clay. With a 45 by 34 foot garden each year added 2-3 yards of compost, 20 bags of manure. This is year 4 and noticed the soul is improving alot. Also I have added earthworms (in spring after the first few rains the street is full of earth worms which my little son who is 3 years old pick and bring into the garden) There were no worms in our plot when we started and now after adding a few hundred each year and this year 1000! There are many earth worms enjoying the garden doing their job instead of being run over on the street.

[AnikaRae]

Yay! It’s garden season! I always binge watch your videos coming into spring to get my garden gears going.

[flowerpixel]

I know this video is old but I tried to look up no-till no-dig on YouTube and I was confused. this really simplifies it. Thank you!

[sharicampbell]

I couldn't till if I wanted to! Clearing my garden space, untouched for 15+ years, revealed way too many tree roots! So, raised beds it is for me & I appreciate all your info shared regarding the biology of the soil & plants and the techniques you employ & share!

[AshP]

THANK YOU for stating the benefits of both and that different circumstances can call for the different methods. Its refreshing to hear instead of bad-mouthing or having a one-approach-fits-all way of thinking.

[McNubbin]

Dad used to till ours every spring before he passed but we have forest right next to the space and by fall you cant even get into the dirt due to the web of feeding roots. Really makes it easy to adjust your PH first thing in spring cover with your lime, gypsum, sulfur we also double dosed with chicken manure and tilled it all in. Mounded out the beds and tamp down the pathways then cover the pathways with grass/leaf clippings every time you mow. Never had an issue also good entertainment for the family when you catch a heavy root and the tiller takes you with it.

[fizzypop]

Great info, Luke, and I totally agree with you about the no "one size fits all". I have tried the "Back to Eden" garden with wood chips twice now, and each time it just takes too long to get good soil quality with the clay I've got around here; so, I'm turning the wood chip garden area into an orchard, and I'm going to build raised beds this season and fill them with organic soil I'm having delivered. I feel it's a win/win because I get to keep the area I already worked so hard to turn into a wood chip garden area, but it will be repurposed into an orchard, and I don't have to deal with waiting now to plant into good soil for veggies.

Also, all the seeds I purchased from your store this season are all germinated and doing amazing in my greenhouse. It's so exciting! The pea plants I planted from your seeds are well over 6' tall and gorgeous, too! They are filled with flowers and getting ready to put on pea pods. I totally recommend buying your seeds. My order of Trifecta is on its way and I can hardly wait to see the results of using it. Thanks for all your efforts to help so many of us with our gardening endeavors. You and Mrs. MIgardener are awesome! 😊

[maryiorio]

Super helpful & informative video. I have 2 raised beds that do not need tilling. My in-ground bed getsreally hard by spring. Now I know I can just keep adding compost annually until it’s got better soil structure! Thanks so much for your guidance!

[ProlerSkyphet]

Hey, I’ve watched a few of your videos and love your down to earth approach. One thing I think is worth mentioning in regards to this video is pioneer plants. You can within several months to a year of introducing pioneer plants to poor soil facilitate some pretty serious change. With a combination of deep rooted soil breaking plants, nitrogen/phosphorus accumulators, and the like the clay begins to loosen up in a big way without much hard work. The easiest way is to grow “weeds” first, and then cut or tarp/sheet mulch over those depending on your preference and it’s amazing how once inhospitable soil becomes so rich with life

[GreenWitchHomestead]

Some great advice Luke. Thanks.
It took us 5 years of adding compost sand and rabbit waist to get our clay into soil. But man it was worth it!!! Even worth listening to all the 'gurus' say we were wrong to till.

[TwOnEightt]

Thank you so much for these videos, i'm a novice and the last 2 years i've had a bad harvest. I've learned that im making a lot of mistakes through watching your videos.

[sazji]

I started a garden with a “back to Eden” no-till approach (not raised beds), but I did “jump-start” it the first year. There was lawn there that had seen a lot of chemicals. I went over the lawn with a hydraulic roto-tiller, then spread some chicken manure and steer manure over it, put cardboard on that and then 3-4 inches of wood chips. That was in October. The first year things were a little slow, but the next year things took off like crazy. I’m doing more perennial gardening. I still added some compost and steer manure here and there and it goes down through the chips with the rain.

Now I’m starting again in a new area and I’ll be using raised beds for vegetables with city compost probably, but I will use the chip mulch over the top to conserve water. Our Seattle summers get very dry from July-September and the free chip mulch from the arborists is a godsend!

[ohhowhappygardener]

Great video! We did no-till at my backyard garden before we moved, only using a broadfork to loosen the soil when planting, but now that I'm in a larger space we are using both a broadfork and tiller. The goal is to build raised beds and go to more of a no-till approach.

[andreakirkpatrick]

Hey Luke! Loved the video. We extended our garden last year because we had a tree removed and we added 6 inches of wood chips to a. 24x40 ft area but added raised beds on tops similar to your garden and it’s doing BEAUTIFULLY! We did this because as another commenter said we were afraid of mixing wood chips in with homemade composted soil and the raised beds prevented that from happening. Although we had great soil underneath because our yard is full of trees, it has provided a nice foundation where weeds are fewer and provides a habitat for beneficial bugs that keep my slug problem at bay. I’ve done the till gardening in the past with mediocre results this is by far the best approach for me. Btw you seeds are phenomenal! I planted so many seeds thinking that some wouldn’t germinate! Well everything did and I ended up giving half away 😂. Keep up the good work!!!

[StreetMachine]

Just bought blueberry bushes, an apple tree, grape vine and a raspberry. Planted them all around and was surprised some areas were heavy clay and some had a deep organic layer. I had to treat each area differently

[marcelburkholder]

Thanks I've just started gardening the last year and wanted to implement the core method and get to no till huge fan of your channel

[walkbyfaithfamily]

Every time I watch a video I learn something new or something I’ve been doing wrong. 🤣
Maybe by the time I have gone through all your videos I will have some decent garden results 🤗

[darlene]

THANK YOU LUKE for this episode. I'm in NE Alabama and the information you shared on clay is exactly what I have been dealing with at my parents' home. I have three beds there and two beds at my home. They have clay and I have dark rich soil. We live a mile apart. They live on the side of the mountain and I live in the valley. This year I noticed that the soil looks better than than it has in the past, and you just explained to me why. Now if I can just get rid of the crawling grass at my place lol